Slow-traveling through any city is better than a short visit—that's as obvious as gelato is delicious. Slow-traveling through Venice, though, might not be on many dream lists; it should be.
Venice gets a bad rap. I've already written about my bias towards this magical city, but I also know that many people find it hot, overcrowded, stinky, and dirty. I'm here to convince you otherwise, and to encourage you to visit and STAY to find its true charm. We were there for over 2 weeks and realize that is unusual. But Venice deserves more than one or two jam-packed days. In the still short time that we've visited, we connected with our neighborhood, the people, the local businesses, and the city. It makes all the difference.
So much to do and so little time....
Ok, I'm going to make this worse before it gets better. There is truly too much to see in Venice. Hordes of tourists arrive at the train station, grab their heavy bags and start the long and crowded journey to St. Mark's Basilica. This is just one of dozens of incredible, educational, and historic Venetian sites.
Here are the things we've seen or visited while in Venice:
St. Mark's Basilica and Museo de Cavalli
Correr Museum
Memorial wall, Campo Ghetto Nuovo
Rialto Bridge
Rialto fish market
Palazzo Ducale (Doge's Palace)
Basilica Di Santa Maria della Salute
Leonardo Di Vinci Museum
Ca'Rezzonico Museum
Natural History Museum
Casa Di Carlo Goldini Museum
Palazzo Fortuny Museum
Galleria dell'academia
Palazzo Moncenigo Museum
Murano including Glass Museum
Burano including Lace Museum
Lido di Venezia Beach
Ca Pesaro Museum
Day trips to Verona and Padua
Gairdini Napoleanici
Trying to see even a fraction of these is impossible in a short visit. People pack their days full, making the most of their time. I get it; I did the same thing on every other visit. I would argue that this approach checks off a longer list, but misses the true appeal of the city—the geography, the history, the people, and the culture.
Everything changes....
That's one thing you can count on. Not the 1000-year-0ld palazzos, piazzas, churches, and bell towers- they still stand (some slightly less straight than before); but we found that Venice has changed (in many good ways) from previous visits.
The city is altogether cleaner. Most visitors to Venice can recall the carpet of pigeons on San Marco square and the high likelihood of a bird poop incident at some point during their stay. Garbage and litter has always been an issue for the city.
Since COVID there has been significant effort to keep the city clean, germ-free, and pest-free. Every morning there are city workers sweeping and washing the sidewalks. Garbage collection sites can be found frequently for removal of waste and litter. Because the city is cleaner, there are fewer pigeons. A local restaurant cameriere (waiter) told use that during the height of COVID, when the city was almost empty, dolphins were spotted in St. Mark's Basin!
In addition, Venice recently decided to ban cruise ships from entering the lagoon. The huge vessels required deep channels and overall negatively affected the health of the lagoon. If the lagoon is unhealthy, Venice suffers through higher tides, more flooding, and more degradation of its fragile foundations. Added bonus: there are far fewer tourists without the cruise ships.
It's about the journey AND the destination....
When I consider our gap year so far, this is the best thing about it. Being excited about our destinations, but also our journeys, reminds me of being a kid.
Venice perfectly models this sentiment. When we set out to visit one of Venice's sites, the walk was as much an experience as the site itself. The canals, houses, and adaptations required by the locals are all fascinating. Each stroll was an event of its own. We weren't in any rush to get where we were going—anyone that knows us well and our baseline walking pace would be shocked to see us meandering through Venice.
I love this article about Walking Venice, shared with us by our Swiss friends. It's funny and poetic; it captures the dichotomies of the city perfectly.
I have focused on mindfulness during this trip. I am working to create space that was always previously filled with work, worries, or feelings of regret. Venice makes being present easy. First, you must pay close attention to your navigation-the city is a complete maze! Honestly, getting lost is part of the fun. We were constantly evaluating our surroundings and looking for things we recognized. The novelty of a city on stilts, without roads, and with countless boats demands all your senses. It's so easy to tap into the magic and stay there.
Venetians
The local Venetians made our time in Venice unforgettable. They are extremely committed to their city and incredibly friendly. From the agent that met us at our Airbnb to the employees of the grocery store, they all welcomed us to their neighborhood (the Cannereggio).
In our short time there, we found our favorite spots and got to know the people that made them special. We have multiple examples of Venetians going out of their way to include our family (including two separate occasions where restaurants put up a whole new table so that we could have dinner by the canal). The locals guided us to the Festa de Redentore, the most important festival to the Venetians; we wouldn't have figured it out on our own.
Slow-traveling in Venice is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (unless I can convince Henri it's a good investment to buy a place in this city that floods and is built on wooden logs wedged in mud); but, even more important, being in one of the locals' neighborhoods opened our eyes to a Venice that we'd never experienced before.
I'm not discouraging a visit if a day or two is all you can manage. My love of international travel, Italy, and Venice started with just one full day. Just make sure to leave time for wandering, and check out some of the neighborhoods. It's often the best part.
The Venetians have ingenuity and grit. They also make some amazing food out of otherwise disgusting-looking seafood (example—cuttlefish). Overall, consider us very impressed and wishing for more.
Thanks for reading. Wishing all of you moments where you can be present and marvel at your surroundings.
Love,
Steph